Royal Dutch Shell on Thursday warned of a financial hit from the recent Hurricane Ida, but the energy giant said cash flows would profit from soaring gas and electricity prices.

British business leaders on Thursday criticized Prime Minister Boris Johnson for lacking a plan to deal with a labor shortage crisis, after he called for them to pay higher wages.

A row between Iran and South Korea is intensifying, with Tehran threatening legal action unless Seoul releases more than $7 billion in funds for oil shipments frozen because of US sanctions.

The Islamic republic was South Korea's third-largest Middle Eastern trade partner before the US unilaterally withdrew from a 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers and re-imposed crippling sanctions.

Greece's lawmakers are set to vote Thursday on a broad five-year defense pact signed last week with France which includes a clause of mutual assistance in case of attack by a third party.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis signed the deal with French President Emmanuel Macron during a Sept. 28 visit to Paris, during which Greece also announced it would be buying three French frigates for the Greek navy.

Long queues returned to Lebanon’s gas stations on Thursday amid a delay in the issuance of the weekly prices schedule by the Ministry of Energy.

The delay has been blamed on a rise in the price of oil globally and on a surge in the dollar exchange rate on the black market in Lebanon.

The European Union on Wednesday urged member countries to provide relief funds to consumers and small businesses hit hardest by rising gas and electricity prices, as criticism mounts that the bloc's climate change fighting policies are fueling the problem.

In recent days, France and Spain have led the charge for change to the rules governing EU energy markets as the price surge ramps up already-high utility bills and increases pressure on many people already hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic.

The energy ministers of Lebanon, Jordan and Syria met in Amman on Wednesday and agreed on a timeframe for supplying Lebanon with Jordanian electricity via Syria.

During the meeting, “a work plan and a timeframe were presented to reactivate the electrical connection line between Jordan and Syria, and to carry out all the technical studies and prepare the necessary treaties for the implementation of the supply process,” Jordan’s news agency said.

Land-starved Hong Kong plans to build more affordable housing in response to public demands that have fueled social unrest.

Chief Executive Carrie Lam announced a major development project Wednesday for Hong Kong's border area with mainland China in the last annual policy address of her current term.

Saudi Arabia's oil company Aramco reached a $2 trillion valuation as it hit near record levels Wednesday during trading hours.

Its market cap value puts Aramco just behind Microsoft and Apple as the world's most valuable company. It comes as crude oil prices climb to over $82 a barrel, the highest in seven years.

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) will "provide up to $29 million to deliver reliable energy across all regions of Lebanon," the U.S. Embassy said on Wednesday.

The Embassy added in a statement that USAID has awarded a contract to IMC Worldwide, Inc. to implement the Innovation for Affordable and Renewable Energy for All (INARA) Activity under the Initiative to Deliver Essential Assistance and Services (IDEAS) Project that is designed to provide up to $29 million to deliver reliable energy across all regions of Lebanon.